The Tree
Ssussdriad Planet *Rool Tiazan refers to Tree as a ssussdriad. Crystal Soldier, ch 32 *The name of Tree's homeworld planet is not stated, but it was listed in the historical records, dating back 2000 years. The planet included oceans, rivers, mountains, polar ice caps. Snow fell in the mountains, in the winter. Seasonal flooding occurred, and rare catastrophic floods.Crystal Soldier, ch 1Dragontide *The trees grew taller than the cliff tops and lived for hundreds, perhaps thousands, of years.Plan B *Jela believes the trees might have actually walked: "the long trip the trees had undertaken from the side of a mountain to the ocean." Crystal Soldier, ch 5 *Long before the Sherieka attacks began, dragons perched in the branches of the mighty trees, and seemed to have a familial, telepathic relationship with them Dragontide *Jela counted more than 3,000 fallen trees on the moribund planet, until he came to the last lone survivor. A young sapling, "It was hardly thicker than his arm" *Inhabitants of the Ssussdriad homeworld have died, all save one: "He might, thought Uncle, gazing down at the pods on Dulsey’s palm, be the only one left who remembered the name of the great race of trees. Ssussdriad."Ghost Ship, ch 11 Tree as Warrior *Jela percieves the mighty trees as warriors who resisted the Sherieka: "He should take a piece for cloning, plant them throughout the Arm" Crystal Soldier, ch 2 *Jela tells Cantra, "That tree is more soldier than I'll ever be. It held a planet against the sheriekas, all by himself, when it wasn't any thicker than my first finger here."Crystal Dragon ch 2 *Jela says, "This tree saved my life. It and its kin fought off the Sheriekas for -- who knows for how long? For dozens of centuries. There is no other reason I can think of that this system was left alone for so long. And why it's got so much attention now."Crystal Soldier, ch 4 *Tree shows Cantra images of the trees holding off the Sherieka by sheer will, until all the Elder Trees had fallen **When Jela and Cantra are held captive, Tree influences enemy hydroponics -- making the plants wilt -- until the captives are released. Crystal Soldier, ch 25 *Tree has been known to throw branches and other debris at unwanted visitors. Scout's Progress, Dragon in Exile, ch 33 Tree as Wizard *The Tree is telepathic and clairvoyant. It communicates in images. At times, it sends warnings of danger. For example, Tree shows Jela pictures of large rodents, depicting the imminent arrival of enemy soldiers (the sherieka's Prototype Ms)Crystal Dragon, ch 20 *In its pictures, the Tree sometimes represents clan members as dragons, including Jela (a black dragon),Crystal Dragon, ch 15 Cantra (a golden dragon),Crystal Dragon, ch 15 Tor An yos'Galen (a jewel-colored dragonet)Crystal Dragon, ch 34 and Theo (a white dragon).Ghost Ship, ch 36 *Tree produces seed-pods, and occasionally demonstrates pharmacological abilities by creating biochemically tailored seed-pods. * In one example, a chemically enhanced seed-pod saves Cantra's lifeCrystal Dragon, ch 16. *In another example, specialized seed-pods extend Jela's life Crystal Dragon, ch 18 *Because they both eat Tree's seed-pods, Cantra and Jela are able to procreate, despite sterility.Crystal Dragon, ch 22 *Tree effects the microclimate, subtly increasing the temperature in the immediate area. Ghost Ship *It modifies plants at the genetic level, enabling them to better withstand cold. Ghost Ship Descriptions *"A pleasingly tree-like trunk and nice, broad four-fingered leaves"Plan B, ch 4 *Jela's sapling was half as tall as Jela, its trunk as thick as his arm, with fuzzy bark. It produced a fist-sized pod.Crystal Soldier, ch 3 *Jela's sapling had a comparatively huge and heavy bulbous growth on the taproot. It was head-sized, and shaped like an onionCrystal Soldier, ch 4 *Tree's bark warms to the touch for welcome visitors. Necessity's Child, Dragon in Exile *Jelaza Kazone glows softly in the dark for young Syl VorNecessity's Child (but see Tree at night in Ghost Ship, ch. 8: "the greater blackness that was the tree's monumental bulk." *Size of Adult Tree: The word "monumental" comes to mind. Theo considers the Tree to be "impossibly tall"Ghost Ship, ch 27 *In Crystal Soldier, Jela spotted "the structures" from space "on his recon runs". Crystal Soldier, ch 1* "Their crowns must have reached above the canyon rim, and together they may have shaded the valley" Crystal Soldier, ch 2 *Circumference: "The base diameter of the downed trunk was easily six or seven times his own height"Crystal Soldier, ch 2 *Tree on Liad: "Daav's house nestled at the far end of the valley, glimpsed briefly as they crested the hill, with a tree soaring out of the center....Korval's tree was -- somewhat taller than she had expected, its arms reaching high and wide across the pale sky." Mouse & Dragon, ch 9 *Aellianna swallowed, staring at the Tree, the clouds of evening tangled in its tall branches."Mouse & Dragon, ch 13 *Tree's Platform: In Local Custom, Er Thom is "seated on the platform he and his brother had built as children, the world below reduced to proper insignificance..." Local Custom, ch 25 Daav climbs Tree: "A steady ten-minute climb brought him to a wooden platform firmly wedged between three great branches." Scout's Progress, ch 5 Excerpt, Local Custom: Anne's first view of Jelaza Kazone: "They climbed a sudden hill, and a valley stretched before them. At the near end, Anne saw a cluster of trees....On the far side of the valley were more trees and -- soaring high into the green-tinged cloudless sky, a...Tree. What on —?" She sat forward in the seat..."It can't be a tree?!" "And yet, it is a tree," Er Thom said. "Jelaza Kazone." 'Jelaza Kazone,' the professorial corner of her mind supplied helpfully, meant 'Jela's peace' or 'Jela's fulfillment.' She stared at the impossible tallness of it, and licked lips suddenly gone dry. "Who was Jela," she murmured? "Cantra yos'Phelium's partner, all honor to him, who died before the Exodus." ...Anne sighed, slowly, and shook her head."It's the Tree? Jela's original?"...."That makes it, what? Nine hundred years old?" "Somewhat...older, perhaps." he said. Local Custom, ch 17 Gender?? *Jelaza Kazone is probably gender-neutral, but possibly female: "Strange energies informed her leaves." Ghost Ship, ch 8 (is this referring to Miri, or Tree?) *"She felt her sap falling, and knew her death was near...yet she bent her energies to her last task, and produced a pod."(Is this Cantra, or Tree, feeling this memory?) Additional Notes Ssussdriads -- born of Jelaza Kazone -- have been given to friends, family members, and to allies to seal contracts. For example, a Ssussdriad grows on the grounds of Clan Oreb on planet Lytaxin (see Plan B). Yulie Shaper, Korval's neighbor, received a sapling (Dragon in Exile, epilogue). Two saplings will grow beside the new Trealla Fantrol, on Surebleak (Dragon in Exile, epilogue). Bechimo and crew find the Spiral Dancer and Win Ton investigates: "The pilot’s chair was empty ... A fiber box had been grey-taped to the co-pilot’s chair ... In the box… was a tree, its leaves green with health, and moving slightly in what may have been the breeze from a ventilator duct. On the whole, it seemed happy to see him."Dragon Ship, ch 41 Jela brought the Tree from a planet he crashed on. The tree was the only survivor on the planet. Jela planted it into an empty ration can and took it with him when he was rescued. The Korval Clan House Jelaza Kazone is built around the tree. When Korval leaves Liad they take the Tree and the house with them because Tree and house cannot be separated anymore. On Surebleak, Jelaza Kazone seems happy to be so industrious with plants and weather Ghost ShipDragon in Exile. References Category:Characters